As the spring 2011 semester draws to a close, seniors at CU are preparing themselves for what is to come once college ends and their adult lives begin.
A number of fears may stand in the way of graduates with student loans looming and a narrow job market still in recovery.�However, even with these fears, some remain content.
Megan Prentice, a 23- year-old senior majoring in business management, is still in the process of narrowing in on future employment during her last weeks as a CU student.
�I�m pursuing three different job options,� Prentice said. �I don�t have a job right now, but I want to work in the business environment in order to acquire some skills before I go off to Africa, which is my ultimate goal � to start an orphanage in Tanzania.�
Searching the market for potential opportunities to build her business experience, Prentice said she is struggling with the reality that sometimes the ideal job does not always pay very well.
�It�s whether you settle for less pay in order to follow your dreams type of thing,� Prentice said. �That�s the battle that I�m facing right now. It�s hard because nobody can tell you exactly what to do.�
Aside from the pursuit of a stable career, Prentice said the transition from college student to self-providing adult is a struggle without the proper knowledge. She said CU should offer classes on self-sustaining skills for seniors.
�There are some things that you do not learn in school, like how to sign a mortgage or how to pay taxes,� Prentice said. �That�s something that the university could definitely expand upon. It�s like you�re supposed to be all grown up when you graduate. I think that I�m not the only one in that boat; I�ve talked to other seniors who feel the same way.�
Ann Herrmann, assistant director of student programs at CU�s career services, said some of these fears can be avoided if seniors take the time to prepare themselves.
�A lot of students prepare from early on in the year, like coming to our career fair in the early fall and participating in campus interviews at that point,� Herrmann said. �I would say that the students who have done all the internships, planning and organizing are doing really well at finding a job.�
She also said that students who may not feel the pressure at the time of graduation may find themselves panicking as summer draws to a close and the reality of beginning a professional job sets in.
�Students tend not to worry that much until after graduation, just before they�re leaving,� Herrmann said. �Reality sets in and now they�re supposed to be this professional person and may wonder �What does that mean?�.�
It is those who may not have organized their time well, missing out on internships and other opportunities, who will probably struggle the most, Herrmann said.
�It�s the students who are still exploring and haven�t had the internship experience – it�s a little more challenging for them to figure things out, but they do eventually,” she said. “Sometimes it�s not until well after college, and then it�s like, �Okay now I�m ready to start looking for a job�.�
Tyler Dodge, a 22-year-old senior economics major, said in his experience as a senior approaching graduation, he fears the loss of friendships and change in environment.
�Even though I am prepared for life after graduation with a job, place to live, plan, etc. – I am still unsure about what life will be like away from Boulder and away from the people I’ve come to know and love here,� Dodge said. �Graduation is a very unnerving thing. I wouldn’t say that I’m worried but I will say that it came much faster than I was expecting and that I am very sad to be leaving Boulder.�
With all the excitement of what is to come in the future, Dodge said he is already looking back at memories through his years at CU with nostalgia.
He said, �Even though there were many tough days, I feel that my time here was more than fun, but really a great time of personal growth and development that has really helped my figure out who I am.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Nora Keating at [email protected].
